The Puffer Forum

Added rock to my aquarium yesterday and my F8 hasn't been the same since. Removed the rock and made a water change this morning. All seemed to be good, however, he is now in a really bad way. Lying on the bottom and panting.

No physical ailment is visible.

The water is harder than it has been, PH looks high, maybe 7.8.

Did the ph fluctuate much with the rock added? Could it be stress from the aquarium being moved around?

Please answer ALL the Qs above, in red.

How big of a wc? Water parameters?

Do another wc 50% and double dose prime.

Really sorry for asking for your attention and disappearing.

Doubly annoying posting without paying attention to the big red header at the top of the page.

I had made two water changes already and didn't have any more aged water. I was busy running round getting some more water cleared and calling a friend with a test kit, these strips are not too useful for times like these.

Unfortunately, as I was trying to get that done my fish stopped breathing. The guy came round to look at the dodgy transmission on the car after, that stopped me from coming straight back here.

Nitrite 0, Nitrate below 20, PH looks liked it spiked, maybe as high as 8.0, KH obviously jumped, looks like it went over 12, I can't say by how much. SG .0005. Temp 80. No tankmates. Tank is about 2 months old.

He was looking poorly this morning so I ran a w.c. and ha came good, although short of his usual self. Then all of a sudden he collapsed.

Two recent changes, the addition of coral rock, and a change if insert in the Biowheel filter (first time). Its a very hot day, its possible the temp went over 80 also, I doubt it, its not a bright or hot room, but its possible.

I am so disappointed in myself that I didn't get things right for this fish. It would be easy to blame bad early advice but I should have done more work initially and got the set up wrong from the start. Although I tried to make up for it, I have fallen short and done something really silly in the end.

I really wish I came across this site at an earlier stage, the info is invaluable. Please keep putting it out there in the hope that people get to it before they are already knee deep in it.

Coral rock? I'm thinking since he went downhill so fast after adding it, this may have been the cuprit. So sorry for y0ur loss...
I hope you will get another one & stick around.

Sorry for your loss, you should try again as it was an honest mistake and keeping puffs is well worth the effort.

One thing for future reference and for anyone who reads the this thread later is to always double check that the rock is aquarium safe. There are a few things you can do to test or ensure safety one: vinegar you can put a few drops of it on top of the rock in question if it fizzes that may indicate a metal substance present (un-safe)
two: soak the rock overnight in warm water this will help get out whatever has soaked into the rock over the years. Finally you can bake the rock in the oven for a few hours at 400 degrees to essentially sterilize it.

Just to clarify, you should probably not boil coral rock (the kind that came from a sw tank)...I wouldn't bake it either

This might happen
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2253493

Thanks PC, I was looking for that link.

purplecandle wrote:Just to clarify, you should probably not boil coral rock (the kind that came from a sw tank)...I wouldn't bake it either

This might happen
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2253493

Wow! That is crazy sci-fi like stuff. Thank you for posting that, it is a valuable lesson.

puffykid wrote:Sorry for your loss, you should try again as it was an honest mistake and keeping puffs is well worth the effort.

One thing for future reference and for anyone who reads the this thread later is to always double check that the rock is aquarium safe. There are a few things you can do to test or ensure safety one: vinegar you can put a few drops of it on top of the rock in question if it fizzes that may indicate a metal substance present (un-safe)
two: soak the rock overnight in warm water this will help get out whatever has soaked into the rock over the years. Finally you can bake the rock in the oven for a few hours at 400 degrees to essentially sterilize it.

You guys are all so kind and warm-hearted. Thank you for your support. It is much appreciated.

I still feel a little raw about it, the poor wee guy suffered, probably overnight which makes me feel really bad.

I am not sure if I will try again. It really does have to be a great set up with not much room for mistakes, its just not fair on the fish otherwise.

I was in discussion over a 35g set-up with a canister filter. I am thinking I may go ahead with that and experiment with some macro-algaes, plants, and crustaceans for a bit.

Maybe if all goes well, I will try a puffer again at the end of the year.

Thanks again for being so responsive and helpful.

I can point you towards some good LFs in the Montreal area...I'm training them....

Master of Puffers wrote:I can point you towards some good LFs in the Montreal area...I'm training them....

That would be awesome. I am in Longueuil. Pretty crappy round here.

see PM...